The Boy Who Lived
by Wise Warrior
Summary: "The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches...born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies…"  Voldemort's endeavors prove unsuccessful, and Harry and his mother live.
1. The Prophecy and the Traitor

"_The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches...born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies…"_

_ "And that is all you heard, Severus?"_

_ "Yes, my Lord."_

_ The former, paler, more snakelike man let an ominous grin creep across his face. He traced his wand with his long, ill-manicured finger. "I have always been able to depend upon you."_

_ The latter nodded curtly, his black eyes betraying not the curiosity he held to hear of whom this prophecy spoke. An eerie silence fell over the room. The younger man paced restlessly around the cold room, his pale hands grasping each other behind his back as his black robes trailed him._

_ "My Lord…" he began, but the Dark Lord held up a long finger. _

_ "That will be all for now, Severus. I need time to think."_

_ Severus Snape nodded once again, and left the room._

* * *

He sat in a large armchair, attempting to regain control. Pettigrew, the nasty git. He had been James's friend—one of his best—during the years at Hogwarts. He had stood by Sirius and James as they hexed and harassed a teenage Snape not many years before. Severus allowed his rage to fill him up momentarily—first his anger at Pettigrew for doing nothing as his friends jinxed an innocent fellow wizarding student, and second his anger at Pettigrew for betraying the Potters, which now included Lily Evans.

_She could be mine, _a voice in his head growled. _She could be mine and none of this would have happened._

_ But she never would be, _came another voice. The antagonist, his inner enemy, a voice of reason and truth that always seemed to stab him in the heart. _You're a filthy half-blood Death Eater potioneer, Severus. James was a quidditch player; he was impressive, unlike yourself. He did things besides make up his own spells and curses. He didn't spend his time with his nose buried in textbooks or literature. He had a life, and a family who loved him, and a home, and most of all he had—and still has—Lily, who will never be yours—_

"SHUT UP!"

Severus's knuckles were white as he gripped mere air between his fingers. His breathing became labored and heavy, as if he were fighting a difficult struggle.

He couldn't break down now; he had to save her.

_Dumbledore lied, _he thought. _He swore he would keep them safe, he swore he would keep _her _safe._

He heard a door open in the distance, and quickly began an effort to regain his composure. He picked up the nearest book and plopped himself down back into the armchair. Footsteps echoed towards the room in which he sat, coming from the ascending feet of someone on the stairs.

"Yes," came an unmistakable high voice from behind the door. "It begins—or should I say, ends," the door opened. "Tonight."

Peter Pettigrew let out a nasty giggle.

"Hello, Severus," came the high voice again. Severus looked up from the book he was pretending to read, and his eyes met the red, snakelike eyes of Voldemort—previously Tom Riddle, but none of his Death Eaters dared call him by his original name for fear of an indefinite period of suffering under the Cruciatus curse. Only one person in the entire United Kingdom, and perhaps even the entire world, ever dared call him 'Tom', and that person was Albus Percival Brian Dumbledore, the man who had promised to keep Lily Evans safe—and lied.

"My Lord," came his curt reply as he closed the book and set it on a table he had not before noticed was next to the chair which he occupied.

"Jane Austen?" questioned the Dark Lord when he set eyes on the book which was now sitting on the table beside Severus. "Feeling sentimental, are we?" A haughty grin crossed Voldemort's face as he met the black eyes of his servant. Severus fought back a scowl.

"Narcissa said it was captivating," said Snape. "I, personally, haven't found it to be very pleasing. It is quite dull." He stood up and picked up the book, walking towards the bookshelf in the corner of the room.

"Do you still wish for me to spare her?"

"Oh, little Lily Evans, the one who never loved you!" interjected Pettigrew.

"Silence, you _swine_," Severus shot back.

"Leave, Wormtail," commanded Voldemort. "I believe Bellatrix is with Lucius and Narcissa downstairs."

Pettigrew bowed obediently. "Yes, my Lord." With this, he left the room, closing the door.

Severus stared at the titles of the ragged books in front of him. He began to put all his energy into occlumency, an art at which he was very advanced, so advanced, in fact, that he could fool the Dark Lord, the most powerful Legilimens among wizards.

"Well?"

"If it would not be trouble," he replied, "I would like her to live, my Lord."

The former nodded. "I can arrange that. But the boy must be destroyed."

"I understand."

A deafening silence took over the room, and it seemed to spin as each moment ticked away, drawing closer to the time when Lily's family would be taken from her. Severus's stomach lurched.

"And the husband? What of him, Severus?"

"Whatever you wish."

"Wonderful."

With a grin forming below his snakelike nostrils, the former Tom Marvolo Riddle exited the room, leaving Severus Snape to drown in his worry and regrets.


	2. Last Moments

"I can't leave you, James!"

"You must, Lily."

James Potter crossed the room to stand in front of his wife. He took in the moment, knowing this would be their last together. Her green eyes were filled with tears and her red hair was disheveled, but she still looked as beautiful as ever. Her lip quivered, and she turned to look at the one-year-old in the crib across the room.

"Look at me, Lily."

She turned, a tear slipping down her cheek, followed by another and another. Within seconds, she was locked in an embrace with James. His arms closed around her waist, holding her close to him, and her face was buried in his shoulder. He didn't mind the wetness of her tears soaking through the fabric of his shirt, the only thing he cared about was this moment, his last moment with his beloved wife.

"I love you," she sobbed, and he traced circles in her back with his finger.

"I know," he whispered into her hair. "I know." She trembled in his arms, and for a moment only the sound of her sobs and their son's steady breathing could be heard. "I love you, Lily." He gently pushed her to arm's length, his hands on her shoulders.

Wicked laughs and yells could now be heard in the distance.

"Take Harry," he whispered. "Take him now. Go through the back door."

Tears were now streaming down her face as if her eyes were waterfalls, and she fell into his arms once again. "James." The sobs resumed. He held her face in his hands, tilting it up to face him, and gently planted his lips on hers.

"I love you, Lily," he said once they had broken apart. She hesitantly walked across the room to retrieve her son. "I always will."

She picked Harry up, and stopped in her tracks. "I won't leave you, James," she said.

"Lily, we've spoken of this!"

"I know, James, and I want to stay! I won't live if it means you'll be dead."

Silence fell over the room like a bomb. The husband and wife exchanged glances of fear.

"I'm going downstairs," said James. Once he reached the banister, he stopped. "I love you, Lily."

Harry stirred as a tear fell onto his face. She watched him walk away in silence, and sat to wait.

These were her last moments.


	3. Regrets and Mocking

"Nervous, Severus?"

Severus Snape looked up from his copy of _The Daily Prophet _to see Lucius Malfoy looking at him, his facial features betraying his amusement at the fact that Lily Potter would soon be dead. Lucius laughed. "I don't know what you ever saw in that Evans girl," he said. "Gryffindor mudblood, worth nothing, and she never even wanted you."

Severus fought to keep himself from lashing out at his fellow Death Eater. He set the Daily Prophet on his lap and shrugged. "She was my friend."

"Well, she's dead by now," said Lucius.

Severus remained stone-faced, willing his face not to betray his despair at this knowledge. It was inevitable that Lily Evans would die, but no matter how much he thought about how it had been coming, he hadn't thought it would be so soon.

"_Well, Severus? What message does Lord Voldemort have for me?"_

_ "No—no message—" He wringed his hands, and stared with fear at the man before him, Albus Dumbledore. "I'm here on my own account!"_

_ Dumbledore raised an eyebrow._

_ "I—I come with a warning—no, a request—please—"_

_ Dumbledore flicked his wand, and silence fell on the spot where he and Snape faced each other._

_ "What request could a Death Eater make of me?" he asked, skeptical._

_ "The prophecy…the prediction…" Snape took a breath. "Trelawney…"_

_ "Ah, yes. How much did you relay to Lord Voldemort?"_

_ "Everything. Everything I heard! That is why—it is for that reason—" he willed himself not to let tears fall in the presence of another. "He thinks it means Lily Evans."_

_ "The prophecy did not refer to a woman. It spoke of a boy born at the end of July—"_

_ "YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN!" he yelled, interrupting the older man. He took a few shaky breaths. "He thinks it means her son, he is going to hunt her down—kill them all—"_

_ "If she means so much to you, surely Lord Voldemort will spare her? Could you not ask for mercy for the mother, in exchange for the son?"_

_ "I have—I have asked him—"_

_ "You disgust me." Dumbledore spat out the words as if they were a cockroach cluster. Snape shrunk back. "You do not care, then, about the deaths of her husband and child? They can die, as long as you have what you want?"_

That isn't what I mean at all, _Severus wanted to say, but he knew it was half a lie. He didn't give a damn whether Potter survived, in fact he'd prefer Potter dead, the git who had incessantly hexed and jinxed him in their youth before stealing from him his love, his only friend._

_ He looked up at Dumbledore. "Hide them all, then. Keep her—them—safe. Please."_

_ "And what will you give me in return, Severus?"_

_ "In—in return?" Snape gaped at Dumbledore. Normally he would protest, but this time was different. After a long moment he said, "Anything."_

"Dreaming about Lily, are you?"

Cold laughs pulled Severus from his memories. He looked up to see Narcissa, Lucius, Rodolphus, and Bellatrix laughing at him coldly.

"No," said Severus. "Simply pondering over what we will do when we have power over the Ministry."

"Of course," Lucius said, grinning doubtfully. He and Narcissa exchanged amused looks.


	4. All We Are is Dust in the Wind

"AVADA KEDAVRA."

Green light shot out through the windows of the house,

James Potter lay on the floor of his home in Godric's Hollow.

"Without the man of the house," said Lord Voldemort, looking down upon the man, "your wife and son are nothing." His high, evil laugh reverberated throughout the house as he made his way upstairs to complete the night's mission, black robes trailing behind him.

A pile of books scattered across the floor with a resounding crash.

_I close my eyes, only for a moment and the moment's gone. All my dreams pass before my eyes with curiosity. Dust in the wind—all they are is dust in the wind._

Severus pushed a stack of encyclopedias off of his bed, letting them fall to the floor at the risk of being separated from their spines. Sitting down upon the bed, he pulled his wand from his nightrobes.

"Colloportus."

The door locked with a clicking sound, and he lay back on the grey sheets, absolutely torn apart by the realization that Lily—_his _Lily—may be meeting the Killing Curse at this very moment.

He was alone, and tears could finally fall freely.

_"You're….you're a witch," whispered a young Severus to Lily Evans in the playground near his home on Spinner's End._

_ Her face contorted into an offended sort of grimace._

_ "_That's _not a very nice thing to say to somebody!" She turned, nose in the air, and marched towards her older sister, Petunia._

_ "No!" Snape said. His pale, sallow cheeks were flushed with color. He ran towards the girls, his ridiculous large black coat flapping behind him like the wings of a bat. The two considered him, and held on to the swing poles while looking at him disapprovingly._

_ "You _are_," he said. "You _are_ a witch. I've been watching you for a while. But there's nothing wrong with that. My mom's one, and I'm a wizard."_

_ Petunia laughed, and he felt as if he had been pushed into ice-cold water._

_ "Wizard!" she shrieked. "_I_ know who _you_ are. You're that Snape boy!" She turned to look at her younger sister, and continued, "They live down Spinner's End by the river. Why have you been spying on us?" She turned back to Snape as she finished._

_ "Haven't been spying," he said, feeling uncomfortable in the sunlight. "Wouldn't spy on _you, _anyway. _You're _a Muggle."_

_ "Lily, come on," Petunia said shrilly, "we're leaving."_

_ Within moments, Snape was left alone on the empty playground, sweating in the bright light._

Now, twenty-one-year-old Severus lay on his bed, the painful memories paralyzing him, leaving him unable to move as regret washed over his body. He traced the black wand at his side with a finger, taking in a shaky breath as he sat up and held it in his hands.

_You could do it, you know. You deserve to be dead anyhow._

His fingers tightened around the ebony wand.

_You know the spell, Severus._

_ No one gives a damn about you, Snivellus, you good-for-nothing half-blood._

Memories flashed through his head, one after another.

_"See ya, Snivellus!" called a voice as Severus and Lily exited a compartment on the Hogwarts Express._

_ "Levicorpus!"_

_ Before he knew it, James had hoisted him into the air and he was now floating._

_ "STOP IT!" he yelled, his green and black robes rippling against him in the light breeze, and he felt his stomach lurch as blood rushed to his head._

_ "Now who wants to see me take off Snivelly's trousers?" said James, an air of menacing in his voice._

_ Laughter and amused yells resounded from the audience._

He willed himself to escape from the torturous pictures in his head.

_ Now don't hang on; nothin' last forever but the earth and sky. It slips away, and all your money won't anoth—_

"REDUCTO."

The record player was blasted into minute slivers, and the room was silent.


End file.
